Stephen A. Smith eviscerated Matt LaFleur for not trusting Aaron Rodgers (Video)

Stephen A. Smith joined the chorus of fans who couldn’t understand why Matt LaFleur flinched when he had a chance to take the Packer to the Super Bowl.

Matt LaFleur has a lot of explaining to do.

Among the many massive plays that impacted the NFC Championship Game, none will be more discussed than the Packers electing to not go for it on fourth-and-goal with just over two minutes left.

The decision made sense from certain points of view. Green Bay was trailing by eight points, and there was a decent chance they could get the ball back given how poor the Buccaneers offense had looked in the second half.

But the field goal only cut the lead to five points. The field goal meant the Packers didn’t need a two-point conversion anymore but still needed to get the ball back and score a touchdown.

Adding to the frustration of the decision was the fact that Green Bay was less than ten yards away from the endzone, and Aaron Rodgers had been dealing a hot hand throughout the second half.

Packers fans cursed the move at the moment, and upon reflection, more and more observers are puzzled by what happened. Stephen A. Smith was beside himself and spoke on behalf of Packers fans everywhere by eviscerating LaFleur for cowering in his biggest moment.

Stephen A. Smith calls out Matt LaFleur over NFC Championship Game

There’s no nice way to put it, LaFleur flinched.

Green Bay had Tampa Bay on the ropes, and rather than go for the kill shot the Packers got conservative at the worst possible time.

To be fair, it was a lot more than just this one call that went wrong for the Packers. Green Bay failed to score more than six points off Tom Brady’s three horrendous interceptions in the second half, and the play before the field goal Rodgers chose not to run in what seemed to be an easy touchdown and instead thew an uncharacteristically panicked incompletion.

But the LaFleur decision was a chance to neutralize those missed opportunities and throw a knockout punch at the Bucs that could have sent the Packers to the Super Bowl. Instead, fans are left with more NFC Championship Game heartbreak to pile onto the already massive heap.